Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The freedom of association that Indonesian workers have enjoyed since the start of the reform movement in 1998 is now set to backfire on them, a seminar heard Thursday.
Titled "10 Years of Freedom of Association of Indonesian Workers", and organized by state-owned labor insurance firm PT Jamsostek, the seminar was told that instead of laying the foundation for a solid labor movement, the exercise of the freedom had led to divisions, and thus impeded the workers from reaching their common goals.
Bambang Wirahyoso, chairman of the National Labor Union, said freedom had produced no more than a euphoria to form labor unions. With unions mushrooming, they are vulnerable to the divide and conquer tactic of the authorities, he added.
"The government can choose to have partnerships with unions supportive of it and neglect the others. It can use certain unions as a tool to push a policy through acceptance, while most workers are unaware of the policy," Bambang said. "In the end, the policy will be detrimental to workers."
The House of Representatives ratified the International Labor Organization's (ILO) 1948 Convention on Freedom of Association in June 1998, shortly after then president Soeharto stepped down following widespread demonstrations in support of democracy.
To date, there are 97 labor union federations and over 11,400 company-level labor unions across the country.
Of the 97 federations, Bambang said, only 15 comply with a 2001 ministerial regulation on union formation. The regulation stipulates a national-scale labor union federation must have at least 150 company-level labor union members and 50,000 worker members.
Bambang asked the government to verify the 97 registered labor federations and approve only those complying with the regulation, warning workers could otherwise face difficulties in selecting representatives in tripartite negotiations.
He accused some labor unions of serving as spies for political parties rather than fighting for the interests of workers.
Sofyan Wanandi, chairman on the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), said employers often found difficulties in settling "crucial matters" with workers because of the confusion about which labor unions or federations to deal with.
"We can't keep having 15 groups representing workers in the tripartite forum. We don't know who represents the workers. Sometimes we reach an agreement with a union, but then face opposition from other unions," Sofyan said. He said most company-level labor unions were already well organized, but when it came to national and regional level, "it is obvious labor unions find it very hard to unite".
Bambang said there were "systematic efforts" underway to split the labor unions, including the 2000 Law on Labor Unions, under which at least 10 people can form a labor union within a firm.
Basrizal, head of the legal advocacy division at the Association of Indonesia Trade Unions, said there were three kinds of labor unions well-known throughout the labor world.
"First, the yellow unions, which tend to compromise with the government's policies and the businesses," he said.
"Second, the paper unions, whose names are there on documents, but have no activities nor are of any use to workers. And third, the genuine unions."